6/9/17

tiny magnetic pets

Album of the Day: Tiny Magnetic Pets, “Deluxe/Debris”

Tiny Magnetic Pets’ 11-minute nautical/synthpop odyssey “Semaphore” is centered around a wayward protagonist, portrayed by singer Paula Gilmer, who’s looking for home. “I can’t tell if we’re waving or if it’s semaphore,” she sings, referring to the maritime method of communication. That song, from Tiny Magnetic Pets’ second full-length electro-pop albumDeluxe/Debris, with its declaration, “The future’s here, it’s all we need,” is just one of the band’s many crystalline visions of a brighter tomorrow—an endearing quality that’s sorely needed right now.
Since 2009, the Dublin group have been perfecting their take on ‘80s-style synth-pop and vintage disco; the trio share a love of analog instruments, Marlene Dietrich, St. Etienne, Stereolab, Neu!, The xx, and Berlin-era David Bowie, among others. Deluxe/Debrisfeatures plenty of electro hooks, and blips and beeps that dot the landscape like candy buttons. Over soft, digital pulse points, Gilmer’s young-Debbie Harry vocals combine with wavy, orchestral synths from Sean Quinn and buzzy percussive loops by drummer and programmer Eugene Somers.
On the moody “Cold War Neon,” stark piano notes mix with digital Morse code, French vocals, and foggy ‘70s sax lines, for a feeling of romantic noir. “Here Comes the Noise (White)” is tense and pulsing, while its mellower twin “Here Comes the Noise (Pink)” slows the tempo to showcase Gilmer’s ethereal vocals.
In a validation of their avant garde leanings, the band met Kraftwerk’s Wolfgang Flür after a show, sparking a relationship which resulted in Flür collaborating with them on the computerized synth-rocker “Radio On”; his stern, commanding vocals and rigid synths enhance the group’s charms and talents.
Deluxe/Debris’ parting message, “Never Alone” is a ray of warmth, its synths pulsing and weaving, its melody assured and triumphant. Throughout, Gilmer offers reassurances like “Music is the antidote” and “Let the music chase the world away,” as she pleads to be allowed to continue space-age dream, hoping to “travel at the speed of light … sail the ship into tomorrow.”
—Emily Reily

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